A/N:

Hello again,

It had been quite a long time since I last updated. I have no excuses for why. It just happened because of a conjecture of different events: first a writer block, next a lost of inspiration and lastly starting university (which, for who had experimented it, is quite demanding on your energy and free times). Also, seeing so many people enjoying this story, I became worried that I might disappoint you if I don't update a good chapter. That insecurity made me lost my confidence and I got struck with a block. I tried what I could to remove that insecure feeling and tried to write time by time. However, it was like the insecurity kept plaguing me. Then, one of the reviews showed up, one that sound as the reviewer was very annoyed and/or pissed off. Because of that, I considered that I was already at the bottom of the lake, so it wouldn't hurt to try again since I have nothing else to lose abymore. So I re-opened this story again. There are still 2 to 4 chapters left for this story. I will do my best to finish it, for you of course, but also for myself because I don't like leaving Seiyou Academy unfinished since I put so much of myself into it to create it. Please enjoy until the last word.

N.B.: Unbeta-ed. For Japanese, see the reminding below this chapter.

A reminder of what happened until now.

The Echizen family decided to move back to Japan on a whim of Echizen Nanjirou. Echizen Ryoma, the youngest child of the family, applied to Seiyou Academy and won a scholarship. She chose Seiyou for one good reason: it was the first seed school of Japan junior tennis players. She hoped to improve in tennis because she had always been the shadow of her father, Samurai Nanjirou from the land of sakura, and of her brother, a tennis star player. Ryoma aspired that Seiyou would gave her what she need to beat her father and her brother some day in tennis.

Seiyou Academy tennis club consisted of three teams named Seigaku, Hiyotei and Rikkaidai. Despite being only a freshman, Ryoma immediately caught the attention of the regulars with her skills. It was clear that Echizen Ryoma wasn't an ordinary tennis player. As a matter of fact, she won over two regulars and earned herself a place among the regulars. The captains of the three teams, Tezuka Kunimitsu, Yukimua Seiichi and Atobe Keigo, had taken upon themselves to properly nurture such a young and fresh talent. However, the captains faced a big problem: Ryoma's personality.

Considering that Ryoma chose Seiyou for its tennis, she naturally pour herself into tennis. Literally. She thought tennis. She breathed tennis. She ate tennis. Basically, she read, wrote, talked, dreamed and watched tennis. It was (blatant) clear that for Echizen Ryoma, the whole universe revolved solely around tennis. The captains were happy that she was so dedicated to tennis, but her personality was an issue for the team members. She didn't want to mingle with the members of her team or with the other teams. Seiyou regulars tennis team was the strongest of Tokyo, if not Japan. However, a team implied that more than one person is involved. Everyone have to work together to enhance every single member's ability. In Ryoma's case, tennis stood alone and above everything. Anything that had no link with tennis was good to be discarded away. Getting along with the regulars as a tennis player, Ryoma had no problem with them. On the other hand, getting along with the regulars as a friend was no-no. If someone dared trying to speak to her about anything unrelated to tennis, she would shoot them a Stay-out-of-my-way-to-play-tennis-unless-you-don't -want-to-die-this-very-next-seconde glare.

When she played tennis, she was there with the regulars, body and mind. But outside of the tennis club, she royally ignored them (unless they dressed themselves in a human size racket costume and human size tennis ball, which was unlikely to happen!). Well, there was still an exception or two where she paid attention to them, like when some not-so-bright regulars (AKA Kirihara and company) decided to attack/feast on her homemade bento (1). In these cases, Echizen Ryoma would paid attention as in I'm-so-going-to-kill-you-for-eating-my-mom's-cooki ng-I-was-looking-forward-to-enjoy to those soon-to-be-murdered regulars.

Ironically, despite Ryoma's unsocial personality, she possessed a strange power to free people from their struggles and darkness. That was why so many people were attracted to her, especially the regulars. Alas for them, Echizen Ryoma absolutely hated to be a people magnet. During practices, the three captains were often lacked of some regulars because one female freshman had a tendency to send off the said-regulars in the hospital wing of the school. For example, one regular among the bunch of the far-from-being-bright regulars (example: Kirihara, Kikumaru) liked (loved!) to glomp (suffocate) our favourite heroine more than once every hour. Sadly for him and for them, little Ryoma loved to breathe and to have her lungs filled with oxygen. So, in order to be able to enjoy Mother Nature's wonderful creation called O2, Ryoma often kicked off the glompers/suffocaters in the sky, sending them sightseeing the school roof. And when the send-off regulars returned back after their short trip above the sky, they ended in the infirmary. Also, Ryoma couldn't understand why after so many times being thrown out in the sky, those guys still didn't catch that she wished to be spared from their nonstop desire to physically express her how much they loved her, for her own sanity and for their good. Ryoma's personality sure gave a headache to the captains, particularly to her immediate buchou, Tezuka Kunimitsu. She had him grow white hair ever since she became Seigaku team (baby) regular.

As she interacted daily with the regulars, Ryoma came (was forced) to understand that she could improve only if she learned to rely on other people. From a very young age, Ryoma thought that she could only depend on herself to develop her skills. Heck, asking the help of her (mean) brother or her (annoying) father had always got her being tease by them, which why she preferred to rely solely on herself. On the other hand, since she did such a good job to become her own coach, she lost the ability to come in contact with other. She was antisocial in every cells of her body. But Seiyou tennis club changed her. She learned how to live with other people around her (not that she had a choice since the guys literally glue themselves on her whenever they had a chance to). She learned to admit the limit of her capacity and learned to relay on other people because she had come to care for other people, such as her buchou (2). She had also learned to care for other people. And she had also learned to care for someone in a special way, particularly for a cerulean tensai (3). She just never knew that her feelings were responding to a certain senpai's (4) feelings.

Ryoma never intended to have sweet feeling for anyone and Syuusuke certainly never thought that he would be drawn to a freshman who came from the common population. At the first glance, he even despite her. However, various circumstances rose to create a story between them. When they didn't want to have anything to do with the other, Life forced them to always be together. And when they had admit their feelings for each other, Life forced them to be apart. Syuusuke left her for two years.

Two years later, he suddenly popped in front of her when she wasn't expecting anything. For welcoming him back, she slammed the door in his face.

Seiyou Academy 79. Explanation

"Sniff!" Ryoma wiped her nose. She was still furious. What did he think she was going to do? Not giving any news for months, making her hope crumbled into dust of hearing anything from him, leaving her sink in despair, then suddenly popped up from nowhere in front of her. Did he think that she would welcome him with her open arms after everything he did to her? What an idiot!

"Syuusuke no baka! (5)" Ryoma hastily wiped the tears blinding her sight and hurry. She didn't the person in front of her and they bumped.

"Ouch!" Ryoma yelped and fall on her behind. But before she hit the ground, she was pulled upward and an arm circled her waist to keep her steady. Ryoma sighed, relieved.

"Thank-..." she stopped when she meet with cerulean eyes. It was Syuusuke. Ryoma jerked a step back away from him. "What are you doing here?" she asked angrily.

"Ryoma, I..."

"Never mind!" Ryoma cut him. "Leave me alone!" She pushed him aside and walked away.

"Ryoma, wait!" Syuusuke called, but Ryoma didn't stop. She made it quite obvious that she didn't want him to fallow her. His shoulders slumbered.

"It is your own fault, Fuji. You should have explained everything clearly to her," a voice said behind him. Syuusuke turned around to see old friends. It was Sanada would talk to him.

"Sanada, Tezuka," Syuusuke said. Tezuka and Sanada nodded in respond.

"Now, how are you going to make her listening to you?" Tezuka asked. Syuusuke couldn't answer.

In her classroom.

"Sniff! Baka, baka, baka no Syuusuke!" Ryoma wiped her tears. She blew in her handkerchief and pocketed it.

He was a prick, but she wasn't going to let him ruin her day. Ryoma choose a seat near the window and settled down. She opened her bag to take out her notebook, preparing for the lecture to start.

"Ryoma," someone called. Ryoma turned her head to see brunette young man standing next her.

"What!" She jumped in her chair. "What are you doing here?" Ryoma snapped.

"Echizen, don't be so rude. You are now a university student. Behave as one," Sanada, who was there as well with Tezuka, scowled his former kouhai (6).

"Sanada-senpai…" Ryoma mumbled.

"Echizen, I understand that you are upset, but you mustn't let yourself being affected to the bad side of the situation," Tezuka said. Ryoma bite her lip, the lowed her head ashamedly.

"Hai, buchou…" Ryoma obediently trailed.

A tiny smile stretched Tezuka's lips. Technically, Tezuka Kunimitsu stopped being Ryoma's buchou from the moment he graduated from Seiyou Academy. However, for Ryoma, he was her buchou for the rest of her life. Whenever she referred him as her captain, it remained Tezuka that there were still people who look up at him as their model and that he would never fail their expectation in his every gestures and decisions. As for Syuusuke, he was happy that Sanada and Tezuka helped him to subdue Ryoma. Despite being parted after they had graduated Seiyou Academy, Sanada and Tezuka still hold a strong influence on Ryoma. Thanks to them, Ryoma didn't run away from him. But that didn't stop her from throwing daggers to him with her angry eyes.

"And what are you doing here? How did you know in which class I am?" Ryoma asked. Tezuka and Sanada looked at each other, and then simultaneously sighed.

"Yagyuu," they answered.

"Yes? Someone says my name?" the mentioned person appeared between Tezuka and Sanada. The group switched their attention to the lilac hair megane (7) young man.

"Argggggh! Onii-sama, doshite aitsu ni oshiete kuretanda? ! (8)" Ryoma asked angrily.

Ever since she became Ryoga's ward as an Yuuji, she also became Yagyuu Hiroshi's younger cousin. Having one big brother as guardian was already annoying, but two, it was really painful. Hiroshi-nii-sama (9) always knew everything about her, what she does or what she plan to do. He knew her too well. He even knew thing about her that she herself doesn't know. Even if Ryoma admitted herself that Hiroshi-nii-sama was less a pain than Ryoga - because unlike Ryoga, Hiroshi-nii-sama had a brain and know how to use it -, sometimes she really wished that she could had some secret that she alone know.

"I didn't tell him anything, Ryoma-chan. It was him who blackmailed Ryou for the information," Yagyuu explained. He turned next to Syuusuke. "Fuji, that was some excellent blackmail. Now, you tell me how you did it so I can use it on that baka cousin of mine! I must make him pay. He dared to run away and dumped on my back the ruckus he left behind again!"

"Oh." Syuusuke wondered if it was a good idea telling Yagyuu how he got Ryoma's schedule from her big brother. On the other hand, he was grateful to Yagyuu because Yagyuu had diverted Ryoma's anger away from him. She was now angry at her baka aniki.

"Grrrrrrrrr…" Ryoma's eyes flared red. Then she exploded. "AHOU (10) NO BAKA NO ANIKI (11)! YOU'RE SO DEAD! HOW COULD YOU LET YOURSELF BE BLACKMAILED BY HIM! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU! YOU HEARD ME! I'M SO GOING TO KILL YOU, ANIKI! JUST WAIT AND SEE ME!" Ryoma roared so loud that everyone in a radius of 100 meters around the school could hear her.

Yagyuu, who had his cellphone opened, spoke to the person on the other line.

"You heard her, Ryou?" Yagyuu asked. Alas, the only answer he got was:

"Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh! I really didn't mean to be blackmailed! Aaaaaaaaaaaaah! Someone save me, pleeeeeeeeeease! Aaaaaaaaaaaah!"

THUD! Ryoga dropped the phone and ran away.

"Hum? Ryou? Moshi moshi?" Yagyuu asked. Someone else picked up the line.

"Huhuhuhu! Hiroshi, this is Miyabi. Ryoga ran outside, yelling, and he climbed on the top of tree in the backyard. He's too scare to think rationally. Now, I'm sorry to cut so soon, but I have to get him down. Huhuhu!" Miyabi giggled.

"Of course. I understand. See you next time," Yagyuu said, closing his cellphone.

The little distraction provided by Ryoga gave time to Syuusuke to straight himself. He had decided; he would talk with her and she would listen to him.

"Ryoma, I think we should talk now. Will you come with me, please?" Syuusuke asked.

"No! I don't wa-…"

"Yes, she will," Tezuka answered at Ryoma's place.

"Huh? What? Buchou, you can't mean-..."

"Echizen, you need to hear him. I agreed that he was the one at fault, but nothing will progress between the two of you two don't talk together," Tezuka said. Ryoma bite her lips. Tezuka had spoken. Wether she liked it or not, she would have to do what he told her. "Go now," Tezuka told her nicely. Ryoma lowed her head, but nodded nonetheless.

Syuusuke nodded thankfully to Tezuka. He grabbed Ryoma's hand and led her to somewhere they could talk in private.

Syuusuke and Ryoma were walking in Ueno Park. More precisely, Ryoma was walking in front (running) to avoid Syuusuke while the later followed her. Though he walked slowly, the distance between the two of them remained the same because Ryoma's shortness was a disadvantage against Syuusuke's long ones. Ryoma was still fuming, that was why Syuusuke gave her some space despite his desire to take her in his arms.

'She is still very upset against me,' Syuusuke understood as he watched the girl in front of him. She was walking (more likely stomping the ground) very fast ahead to keep distant between them, but her shorter legs couldn't compete against his long ones. After what seemed to be an eternity for Syuusuke, he decided that it was time they talked.

"Ryoma," he called. No answer from the girl. Maybe she didn't hear him?

"Ryoma," he called again. Still no answer. Probably she didn't hear him.

"Ryo-"

"STOP IT! I HEAR YOU ALREADY!" Ryoma spun around and snapped.

Syuusuke shut and only watched her. Even in anger, she was still beautiful in his eyes. In fact, she was more beautiful than he remembered her to be. These two years apart from her had really turned her into a lovely young woman. She lost her baby fat cheek, the line of her figure was more defined, making her eyes looked bigger. She let her hair grow down to mid-back. No one could mistake her for a boy anymore. The little duck he fell for had turn into a lovely swan. Her appearance changed, but also her being. Echizen Ryoma was no longer the young girl who only think about tennis, about her cat Karupin and about Ponta and food. Now, she thought like a young woman, like a young woman in anger.

"What is wrong with you? You left for two years far away. For two months, you didn't answer to my letters. You gave no news about you. All that time, I was worrying that something bad happened to you. Then, one morning, you show up in my front door as nothing happen. Were you expecting me to welcome you open arms? You..."

And Ryoma went on rampage, releasing all the stress she built up the past months in a long and eternal speech. While she talked, Ryoma had no idea what she was walking about. Words and anger and sadness just stumbled out of her mouth without herself having control over them. But it wasn't like that what to control what her mouth want to say.

Meanwhile, Syuusuke listened to her. He listened to her sadness and angriness, as well as the all nonsense she was saying. He knew she didn't know exactly what she was saying, but he understood her feelings. The more he listened to her, the more he realized he had upset her more than he believed he did.

"What do you-...?" Ryoma was still rumbling, waving furiously her fist to him.

As she waved her fist to him, she approached him to give a clearer idea of her anger. But the closer she got to him, the harder it was for Syuusuke to keep control on himself.

'It's been so long since we were this near each other,' Syuusuke thought. And he wanted her even closer to him, against him. And he would use all the means he need to use to get what he wanted. Syuusuke grabbed one of her flying first and used it to pull her to him. He closed an arm around her waist and imprisonned her against him. Then, he descended his lips to cover hers in an demanding kiss.

"Mmmnomfffph!" Ryoma fight to be released, but Syuusuke kept a firm grip on her. He used his right hand to immobilize her head so he could have a better access to her mouth. Eventually, Ryoma stopped fighting and even returned his kiss.

After a long time, they finally separated.

"Ryoma, you are no longer a little girl like when I first met you. You have become a woman. That was why I have to leave before I might do anything that both of us would regret later. That was why I didn't write you anything for the past two months," Syuusuke whispered in her ear. "Exchanging letters between us was no longer enough for me. I want more. I want to hold you against me."

Flashback

Syuusuke never wanted to hurt Ryoma's feelings. He put a distance between himself and her because he thought it was the best thing to do for her. Or he believed so.

Ryoma was younger than him and quite naive by time. He knew very well that he hold an immense influence over her, something that might blind her from seeing the reality about him and around her. He thought that since Ryoma only had eyes for him, she couldn't see that there were probably other young man who could be better for her them himself. Of course, he was immensely happy that she had chosen him, but that was because Ryoma had never laid her eyes on other guy. Syuususke wanted her to choose him with the knowledge that other guy existed. That was why he left away to England. Syuusuke wanted Ryoma to clear her eyes with his picture and so she could the good in his potential rivals for her heart.

But there was another reason behind the noble intention Syuusuke had for Ryoma. Up to now, despite being girlfriend and boyfriend, there had never taken any step ahead. Their date mostly consisted of enjoying a meal in a restaurant, but they were never the two of them alone. There was always a third party: sometime, it was with the regulars, other times it was with family members (Ryoga and Miyabi, Syuusuke's parents, Ryoma's parents, Syuusuke's sister and her children...).

When she was still fifteen, Ryoma's appearance was quite average, nothing very special aside her eye color. But as she reached her sixteen, her feature softened. Day by day, she became less and less a tomboy and more and more a young woman. Her chest area finally decided to show itself and Ryoma grew her dainty curves. Ryoma only gained a couple of inches over the years, but her love for tennis gave her leaned legs and arms. She had also become more feminine under her sister-in-law Miyabi's influence. She accepted to wear anything Miyabi bought for her (but nothing her brother bought for her!). Miyabi had more success than Rinko when it was time to change Ryoma's wardrobe. As Syuusuke saw Ryoma turned into a woman day by day, it was more and more difficult for him to content himself with a platonic relationship. He wanted more from her. However, since Ryoma was very far away from her eighteen, Syuusuke doubted that he could wait so long for her to reach the right age and not doing anything between that time. So before he might do something unforgivable, he flew to England.

End flashback

He should have known Ryoma wouldn't welcome him with open arms after what he did to her. However, he didn't think that she would be so angry.

1) bento: lunch box;

2) buchou: captain;

3) tensai: genius;

4) senpai: upperclassman;

5) baka: idiot, more commonly use in Tokyo. 'Syuusuke no baka' meant 'Idiot of Syuusuke';

6) kouhai: underclassman;

7) megane: glasses;

8) Onii-sama, doshite aitsu ni oshiete kuretanda?: Big brother, why did you tell him? 'Onii-sama' is a very polite way to say 'big brother'. It also be applied to older male cousins or simply to a boy older than you and whom you look up as a model or a big brother

9) Hiroshi-nii-sama (Hiroshi-onii-sama): big brother Hiroshi, respectful language;

10) ahou: idiot, more commonly use in Oosaka;

11) aniki: big brother, casual language.

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. PLEASE READ.

To whom this may concern,

I have been made aware that there are people who were posting my fanfic as their own on other fanfiction communities, claiming that they are the author as well. Those people just copied and pasted this fanfic on their account under the form of a hundred percent plagiarism. Please, I will ask the concerned people to remove my fanfic from your publishing account or give me back my credits. I will tell you that it is not at your advantage that you keep claiming my fanfic is yours. As you must be aware, there is more than one person reading my fanfictions. You run a very high risk of being reported and I don't believe you would like that. I don't want to imagine what might happen to you in that case. I leave it to your imagination. Also, people who read this story from the beginning know that my grammar isn't the best. Claiming my story with its bad grammar will discredit you even if your grammar is better than mine. So again, please, remove my story from your account or give me back my credits. If you cannot have respect for me, please, at least have respect for yourself and do not degrade yourself so low.

Sincerely yours,
Plush

Update on Friday, June 24, 2011. Unbeta-ed.